Announcements

Joining a growing trend among artists, publishers and other creators, Ben Folds has opened an account at the crowdfunding site Patreon, and will be offering enhanced content and experiences to those who become regular paying members.

Launched this week, Ben’s Patreon page will offer perks like live streams from his studios, MP3s of unreleased songs, and the opportunity to contribute to songs that are written and performed on the spot.

Subscriptions start at US $5 per month, and for that amount, members will receive (more…)

The single for Mister Peepers, Ben Folds’ song about deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein and the derogatory characterizations of him (and which we wrote about here) will be released on 7-inch vinyl in the US. There’s a release event planned at Brooklyn’s Rough Trade at 3:00 pm Saturday, November 24, which is also Small Business Saturday. Ben will give a short performance, followed by a signing of the single. You only need purchase a copy of the 7″ ($8.99) to be admitted to the event. Doors open at 2:00 pm.

Rough Trade is a top independent purveyor of music and media. The Brooklyn store, in the Williamsburg neighborhood, is the largest of five locations, the other four being in the UK.

In what is probably a first for an American musical artist, Ben Folds will be leading a four-day music and culture tour of the formerly off-limits (to US citizens, anyway) island nation of Cuba next May.

Called The Ben Folds Havana Getaway, the tour takes guests on a trip around the capital city and environs, featuring a private concert by Ben and another performance with some of Cuba’s top musicians. Also included are visits to Havana’s art galleries, museums, architecture and cultural institutions, a tour in one of the classic 1950s American convertibles that Cuba is famous for preserving, cigar and rum tastings, and special events revolving around Ben’s passion for fine arts photography.

The event, packaged by Cuba Arts Live!, takes place May 25-29. Cost ranges from $3,199 per person and up, with a couples rate of $6,199, and includes ground transportation, lodging, meals, events and concerts. Participants need to arrange their own air travel, visas and insurance, which can be arranged through the event’s travel agent. Also not included are incidentals, side trips, souvenirs and any extended stay expenses.

Registration opens Friday, December 16 and there is a discount for registering prior to December 31. Full information can be found here.

Ben Folds will be touring the midwest this winter with a dozen dates in towns in ten states.

It’s a continuation of the Ben Folds and a Piano tour that started last fall. Most shows feature the availability of special VIP and Master Class packages as well. The Master Class packages include a piano class with Ben, meet & greet with autographed photo, early access for the sound check, beverages and other souvenirs. The Soundcheck packages include all of the above except the class.

Dates and cities are:

February 12: Cedar Rapids, Iowa

February 14: Green Bay, Wisconsin

February 16: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

February 17: Bloomington, Indiana

February 21: Columbia, Missouri

February 23: Salina, Kansas

February 25: Urbana, Illinois

February 26: Knoxville, Tennessee

February 28: Asheville, North Carolina

March 1: Birmingham, Alabama

March 3: Baton Rouge, Louisiana

March 4: Memphis, Tennessee

Tickets go on sale to pre-sale fan club members and the VIP packages generally on Wednesday, December 7 and general admission on December 9.

As part of a broad release by the independent record shops collectively known as Record Store Day, a new 10-inch vinyl by Ben Folds with yMusic becomes available in limited quantity (only two thousand pressed) on Friday, November 25 (the day after US Thanksgiving).

The EP, simply titled Ben Folds & yMusic In Concert 2015-2016, is on the New West label and assembles a handful of tracks of recent composition as well as one of Folds’ evergreens, and is described as

For non-hipsters, vinyl records have grooves on both sides of the platter, unlike compact discs that younger baby-boomers and some Gen-Xers are more familiar with. Side A consists of Not a Fan, Erase Me and Capable of Anything. Side B features Phone in a Pool and Steven’s Last Night in Town. If you’re living in the digital world, December 9 is the date to watch for the downloadable version to appear on your favorite digital service provider.

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